Chinese Chicken Stew with Black Fungus

When the temperature dips and the sky gets dark at 4 pm, claypot becomes my favorite friend. I love all sorts of claypot cooking, it produces very hearty, easy, and delicious meals for my family, and it’s one of the least expensive utensils to invest in any kitchen.

One of the dishes that I would make over and over again during colder months is chicken stew with black fungus, a classic Chinese/Cantonese dish that anyone can whip up at home. It’s so easy to make and with claypot, cooking is so effortless because you practically just dump all your ingredients in there, do a few quick stirs, add some liquid, cover the lid and let the claypot does its magic.

Black fungus is a popular ingredient in Chinese/Cantonese cooking. The word fungus does turn a lot of people off, but it’s basically like shiitake mushrooms, except that the texture is thinner but every bite is a snappy crunch. It goes so well with stewed chicken. All you need are some ginger, oyster sauce, a dash of cooking wine and sesame oil, and you will have a scrumptious dish that goes well with steamed rice.

I am very curious about this clay pot cooking technique. Are you using it on the burner on the top of the stove? I have only ever used clay pots in the oven.

I am very excited to try this recipe! I took a cooking class on traditional spring rolls and have a huge bag of the black fungus, bought to be used in the filling. Don’t be turned off by the name. I was skeptical. They are quite good.